NOLA Day 2: Do I want to move here?

Willa Jean, The Collective Shop, Loretta's Authentic Pralines, Baldwin & Co., Community Book Center and Dakar NOLA. Five of these spots are Black-owned! Also: I spent $200 on dinner. Worth it.

I’ve never seriously considered living anywhere besides the DMV until last Thursday. I’ve been talking to God and my parents about this since.

Even the best day on a vacation shouldn’t mean you pick up your things and move to the destination, but there I was feeling an ease, completeness, and sense of community I’ve never felt in my life.

We’ll revisit that in a future newsletter because that’s absolutely not what you came here for. Today’s post is long enough!

Don’t forget: I’m sharing a free (for now) and downloadable itinerary with newsletter subscribers on Friday. Sign up!

Watch the day 2 companion vlog on TikTok or Reels.

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Breakfast at Willa Jean

The weather cleared up and it was beautiful, so I made the 12-minute walk from my hotel to Willa Jean in the CBD neighborhood/Warehouse District. I came across this contemporary Southern café and bakery on TikTok when researching for this trip.

For a Thursday morning in mid-October, Willa Jean was bustling! I made a reservation five weeks in advance, but you can walk in.

I had the shrimp and grits and washed it down with a peach bellini. Both were great.

I had plans for something sweet later in the day, so none of Willa Jean’s famed baked goods for me! Next time.

This is a solid breakfast and meeting spot in the city.

Shopping at The Collective Shop

After breakfast, I hopped on the St. Charles streetcar and headed Uptown.

Pro tip: If you plan to use the streetcar a couple of times during your stay in NOLA, get a Jazzy Pass. I got a three-day pass from RTA’s Le Pass app for $8. Honestly, it was never checked by the streetcar operators.

The Collective Shop is one of my favorite Black-owned brands. I’ve shopped from The Collective Shop’s website, but I wanted to see the store in person for myself.

This modern shop on Magazine Street sells locally-made stationery, art, home goods, clothing, accessories, skincare, fragrances, body care, and vintage items.

I spent quite a bit at The Collective Shop. You’ll see what I got in a future Black-owned haul on my TikTok.

In general, Magazine Street is a shopping and dining destination. I walked past the several boutiques and restaurants!

I headed back downtown on the streetcar, but not sans issues. A car drove into a streetcar further down the line!

Lunch at Loretta’s Authentic Pralines

I was over the streetcar after the accident, so I took a Lyft to Marigny in the afternoon.

Most people who know New Orleans on a non-touristy level will tell you Café Du Monde’s beignets are overrated. And after visiting Loretta’s Authentic Pralines, I must agree!

I visited the Black-owned sweets shop to try their famous sweet AND savory beignets. There’s also a location in the French Market, but I recommend going to the main location on N Rampart to feel the soul of this local institution.

The place is decked out in Christian-centric artwork and trinkets. When I saw the life-sized crucifix draped in shiny red fabric next to the beverage cooler, I said to myself, “Ms. Loretta is more saved than all of us!” And you know what? When you’re one of NOLA’s most beloved figures, who else can you give it to but God?

Loretta’s crab beignet was the single best thing I ate last week. I was mad I only got one. Also, don’t be ashamed to make a makeshift bib out of napkins to catch all the powdered sugar when you eat the sweet beignets.

Chilling at Baldwin & Co. coffee + bookstore

A couple of blocks away from Loretta’s was another Black-owned business at the top of my list of places to visit.

Baldwin & Co. is a lively community hub and non-profit in the historic Marigny neighborhood. In addition to the coffee and books, it boasts a podcast studio for rent and a quaint outdoor garden. I sat out there for an hour reading my Kindle (I bring it everywhere now if it fits in my bag). Apparently, there’s a bar next door. I didn’t see it, but I believe it.

I picked up the sequel to a book on my October TBR (to be read if you’re not on Book Tok), some greeting cards, and an iced Vanilla Brown Sugar Latte.

I know. Talia doesn’t drink coffee. However, I’ve heard so much about this drink, I had to try it. I almost went home with a coffee habit off this drink.

The highlight was meeting a TikTok follower and her friend who were in town for Grambling’s homecoming. I still pinch myself when this happens.

Feeling full at Community Book Center

I didn’t know about this next Black-owned bookstore until I arrived in the city, but I’m so glad I made room in my day to visit.

Community Book Center has been serving the New Orleans community for 40 years. CBC is located on Bayou Road, a street near the Seventh Ward and Tremé/Lafitte neighborhoods that’s historically been home to numerous Black-owned businesses and restaurants. Next time I’m in NOLA, I need to go to both Addis NOLA and CupCake Fairies on Bayou.

The Afrocentric shop is filled with art, novelty items, gifts, and of course, books. The absolute best part of CBC is Mama Jennifer. If you know you know.

Mama Jenn (and the store cat) was in the shop when I stopped by. I told her I was visiting from D.C. and liked the Haitian flag hanging in one of the windows, and baby, we got to talking!

I’ve long decided that I’ll be visiting New Orleans annually. And every year, I’ll be dropping in CBC just to say hi to Mama Jennifer.

Dinner at Dakar NOLA

In the grand scheme of things, we shouldn’t put too much into awards and accolades. However, when Dakar NOLA was named one of the 24 Best New Restaurants in the country by Bon Appétit Magazine, I got on my Resy! Just yesterday, Dakar was named one of the 25 Best Restaurants in New Orleans Right Now by The New York Times.

This up-and-coming Black-owned restaurant putting a spotlight on Senegalese cuisine is led by a 2023 James Beard Award finalist. I made a reservation a month in advance.

Please don’t be deterred by the idea of paying almost $200 upfront for the seven-course tasting menu and communal dining experience. This was one of the best meals of my life.

Yes, the modern Senegalese and pescetarian menu made with locally sourced seasonal ingredients is a 10 out of 10, but the experience at Dakar is more than that.

It’s the ambiance. Locally-made handmade ceramics, dinnerware and serveware. Senegalese Jazz from the 1970s and 1980s flowing through the speakers. The lighting. The gallery wall of hand-carved masks. The peak into the energetic kitchen from your seat.

It’s the service and attention to detail. The Dakar team knowing your name and the names of the 29 other people dining alongside you before you even walk in. The signed birthday card waiting for you at your seat. Nearly everyone front and back of the house, Chef Serigne included, coming to your table to chat.

It’s the brilliance of Chef Serigne Mbaye. He’s a Virgo. He’s a perfectionist. He’s Carmy from The Bear without the constant look of exasperation and overall tragic existence. He’s dedicated to proving West African cuisine deserves the same global stage and reverence as its counterparts.

It’s the new friends. Going into dinner, I was nervous about the communal dining experience. I didn’t know who I’d be sitting with. Maybe it would’ve been a bunch of couples and small groups, and me—the loner who isn’t even from here. I’m more introverted than you think. But, Dakar did its big one with the intentional seating arrangements. I was destined to be at the table I sat at. I shared a meal with five amazing people from New York, Los Angeles, 25 minutes from my house in Maryland, and right here in New Orleans by the way of New England. We exchanged numbers and Instagrams. We’re bonded now.

Tomorrow on NOLA Day 3: Soaking in the city’s history and culture, repeat visits, and another critically acclaimed fine dining experience.